


Fireflies and Fairy Lights

by nightbirdrises



Category: Glee
Genre: Alternate Universe, M/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2014-09-12
Updated: 2014-09-12
Packaged: 2018-02-17 03:08:42
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 8,262
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/2294579
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/nightbirdrises/pseuds/nightbirdrises
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>The Andersons, when Blaine is seven, decide to take a family trip to an isolated campground for a change of scenery, too used to living near the bustling city of Columbus. It's the third week of July and they're far from the only family there. While Blaine enjoys all the company, he fixates on one person in particular.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Fireflies and Fairy Lights

**Author's Note:**

> originally posted to [tumblr](http://princehummel.tumblr.com/post/95626625546)

"Dad, where are we going?"

Blaine looks away from the window and towards the driver’s seat, interested in the answer to Cooper’s question. Cooper’s tone is bored; Blaine knows he doesn’t want to go camping, at least not with his family and none of his friends or potential girlfriends. He’s fifteen now, and Blaine is a bit in awe of how old his big brother is - a  _teenager_  - but that doesn’t mean he has forgotten the way that Cooper never praised him for finally getting their dance routine right. So Blaine scrunches his nose a little at Coop’s obvious annoyance, because what could be more fun than camping?

"We’re going camping, buddy." Blaine’s frown deepens; Dad never calls them by anything but their name. It’s weird.

"Duh, but where is this place? Are we going to be in the middle of nowhere?"

"It’s about halfway to Lima," their mom says, Mama, the voice of reason and kindness. "Do you remember Lima, little bee?"

Blaine shakes his head as Cooper rolls his eyes. “Mom, are you talking about the Dalton thing? He was, like, three or something.”

That helps Blaine remember - the family had gone to Lima because Dalton Academy, where Cooper is about to be a freshman, had a football game against the McKinley Titans, and Cooper had spirit for his future school even then. Since then, though, Dalton has only played against other private schools.

"We have half an hour of driving to go," their dad says, pointedly shutting down the conversation. He likes the quiet while driving, but Blaine doesn’t really understand why. It seems so boring when you don’t talk to anyone. Next to him, Cooper crosses his arms.

Blaine hopes that things will get a little better when they get there.

 

* * *

 

About an hour after getting their travel trailer settled with the campground’s water and electricity, Blaine is buzzing with energy. There are families all around them and he wants to meet them all, but Cooper’s refusing to go exploring with him.

"I’m  _tired_ ,” Cooper says, covering his face with his hat. “You can play by yourself, right?”

"That’s no fun," Blaine says with a pout. "I wanna play with everyone, but Mama says you have to go with me."

"There are coloring books in that drawer in the kitchen."

“ _Coo-oop_ ,” Blaine whines. Cooper sighs and tosses his hat away.

"Fine. But you better not embarrass me in front of any girls, Squirt." Blaine grins and runs outside to tell his mom that they’re going to look around. She just tells him to be careful and to stay close to Cooper because it’s going to get dark soon; Blaine dutifully promises to do just that. Cooper comes out a few minutes later, yawning exaggeratedly.

(Blaine’s pretty sure Cooper exaggerates _everything_ , but maybe it’s a teenager thing.)

"Alright," Cooper says, "Let’s get going. But no singing, okay Blainers?"

"Okay," Blaine says, deciding not to point out the fact that it’s usually Cooper that initiates their performances. He glances around at the quiet activity going on all around them and bounces on the balls of his feet, tugging at Cooper’s shirt.

"Lead the way, and don’t wrinkle this shirt, it’s new."

Blaine lets go and wanders ahead, the setting sun leaving golden trails on the rugged dirt road that runs through the middle of the campground as he follows it, Cooper close behind him. He can’t see any kids his age anywhere - there’s a group of boys that look much older than Cooper, and a young couple with a little girl still learning to walk, but no one that Blaine thinks he could really enjoy spending time with. Nevertheless, he greets everyone he sees, and gets mostly smiles in return.

"Slow down, Squirt," Cooper calls, and Blaine turns around to see him making finger guns at a few teenage girls sitting around a campfire, all of whom are glancing at each other and giggling.

"He looks like an actor," one girl says, just loud enough for Blaine and Cooper to hear. Cooper frowns for a moment, then lights up.

"That’s what I’m going to be, you know," he says. Blaine tilts his head. "Hey, what if I gave you ladies a few tips on acting?"

"Coop—"

"Blaine, you just run and play, alright? Make friends."

"But Mama said…" Blaine trails off as Cooper starts walking towards the campfire, chest puffed out like those birds he sees on Animal Planet sometimes.

"I sing, too," he hears Cooper say, and Blaine gives up on thinking his brother will change his mind and listen to their mother for once. He doesn’t hang around - as much as he’s sure the girls are nice enough, he doesn’t want to get in Cooper’s way. Instead he walks slowly down the road, careful to be alert despite endless distractions. Like the light he sees flashing in the middle of nowhere to his right, floating through the air. And another one just a few feet away. And three more.

Blaine slows to a stop, eyes wide, as he takes in the gradual appearance of the fireflies around him - they aren’t common in Westerville, it being so close to Columbus, but he has seen a few. This, though, is nothing like he could possibly have ever imagined. They’re like stars, plucked straight from the sky, still twinkling.

He’s vaguely wondering if he should go back to the trailer when he hears giggling - it sounds too much like it’s coming from someone his age for Blaine not to investigate, a last-ditch effort in finding a companion. He walks ahead, and just on the other side of yet another trailer is something even more incredible than the fireflies alone. Jars upon jars, arranged on a picnic table, on the ground, perched precariously on top of the awning that protects the trailer’s doorway from rain, and all filled with flickering, floating fireflies, the stars captured in minuscule galaxies of their own.

"Mommy, won’t they get sick in here?" a small (but bold) voice asks. Blaine looks harder and sees a boy covering the top of a jar with plastic wrap, then poking holes in it with a pen. "They have no food, and what if some of the fireflies bully the others?"

"We’ll let them go before we go inside, sweetie," a woman says. Blaine guesses that she’s the boy’s mother. Unsure how to approach them, Blaine finds a small bush and crouches next to it, letting the dark do most of the hiding for him. And he listens. "They won’t get sick."

"They might get bullied, though. Look at this really little one, and he’s stuck in there with all those big ones. Will he be okay?"

"Fireflies don’t bully," the woman says gently. "They have much better things to do."

"I wish the boys at school were more like fireflies," the boy mumbles, staring at the jar in his hands. 

"Well, you’ll just have to be a firefly yourself by making your own light in the dark. That way, you’ll attract more people just like you, like how the fireflies use their light to find each other."

"I don’t think I’ve met anyone that’s like a firefly ‘cept you and Daddy," the boy says skeptically.

"You will, honey, I promise."

"Pinky promise."

"Of course."

Blaine watches them quietly, a little confused about the mother’s talk of fireflies. He doesn’t think there are any people like fireflies that he knows, but he might just be misunderstanding the point - he gets that from adults sometimes, that things ‘go right over the poor boy’s head.’ Still, he inexplicably feels less lonely just listening to them, and now he wants to talk to them for real. So he stands, brushing himself off, and takes a few tentative steps towards the little family.

"Hello?" he says; the boy turns to him first. His grip on the jar tightens slightly and he doesn’t say anything. "My name’s Blaine. What’s yours?"

"Kurt," the boy says quietly. He looks at his mother, who smiles.

"It’s nice to meet you, Blaine. Are you here with your family?" Blaine nods.

"Dad, Mama, and my big brother Cooper," he says. Kurt watches him warily and Blaine wonders why - he’s not scary, is he?

"Did you lose them in the dark?"

"No," Blaine says, glancing at Kurt. "I just saw your fireflies, they’re really pretty. Did you catch them all by yourself?"

"Mommy helped me," Kurt says, a little proudly. "But I caught most of them." Blaine reaches for a jar and stops, looking at Kurt. When Kurt nods, he grins and picks it up, examining it closely.

"Wow," he says, awed. Out of the corner of his eye, he sees Kurt smile. "Can you teach me how to catch them?"

Kurt puts down the jar he’d been holding and steps closer to Blaine. “Okay. It’s really easy, but you have to be careful.”

"I can be careful," Blaine says, putting down his jar as well, excited at the prospect of learning something new. Kurt gives him a stern look, crossing his arms.

"Promise?"

"I promise!" Kurt looks at him for another moment, then smiles.

"Good."

"I’ll be right inside with Dad, okay?" Kurt’s mom says. "Let me know if you boys need anything. And Blaine, you can call me Liz."

"Okay," Blaine says, ducking his head bashfully. "Thank you, Liz."

She smiles at him and disappears into the trailer, leaving the two boys outside with the firefly jars. Kurt clears his throat and beckons Blaine to the grass a few feet away from the light. He has two empty jars in his arms.

"All you have to do is pick a firefly and catch it with the jar," Kurt says quietly, as if the fireflies will hear them plotting. "It’s harder when you have a bunch of fireflies already because then they might fly out."

"What do you do if they fly out?" Blaine asks, taking an empty jar from Kurt when it’s offered to him.

"You catch them again," Kurt says simply. He looks around and holds his jar parallel to the ground, slowly approaching the blinking of a firefly. Blaine watches in amazement as Kurt gets close enough to guide the firefly into the jar with his free hand, careful not to let it escape by flying up or down. He covers the top of the jar with the palm of his hand and stands up straight. "See? Easy."

It takes Blaine a few tries to keep more than three fireflies in his jar, but with Kurt’s coaching, he eventually succeeds. Kurt helps him cover the jar with plastic wrap, tie the wrap around the rim of the jar with a rubber band, and poke holes in it.

"It’s so they can breathe," Kurt tells Blaine, clearly pleased to be teaching what he has learned to someone else.

"They’re so pretty," Blaine says, admiring his jar. "Not as pretty as all of yours, though." Kurt smiles shyly at him and scuffs his heel on the ground.

"You can keep it," Kurt says. "If you want." Blaine grins and rushes to hug Kurt, who tenses for a moment before relaxing into the embrace.

"You’re a good friend," Blaine tells him, letting go so he can pick up his firefly jar. He doesn’t notice Kurt staring at him until he looks up. "Kurt?"

"We’re friends?"

Blaine freezes - does Kurt not want to be friends? But he’s so much fun, and he’s so nice… “If you want.”

"Yeah," Kurt says after a moment; Blaine doesn’t think he’s ever felt so relieved in his life. "You’re a good friend too, Blaine."

Kurt is called inside not long after that; the boys take a few minutes to release the fireflies from their jars before Blaine has to return to his trailer. When Blaine goes to take the plastic wrap off of his own jar, Kurt stops him.

"Let them go when you get back," Kurt says. "Maybe they can help you find your way."

"Thank you, Kurt," Blaine says earnestly. "Can we play some more tomorrow?" Kurt nods, looking as excited as Blaine feels.

"Oh thank  _god_ , Squirt, you’re right here!” Blaine spins around and spots Cooper jogging towards them, obviously panicked. “I thought I lost you.”

"I’m okay," Blaine says. "Look, Coop, I caught fireflies with Kurt!"

"With who?" Cooper reaches them and sees Kurt standing a few feet behind Blaine, arms wrapped around himself as he stands up straight. "Oh, is this Kurt?"

"Yep," Blaine says. "Kurt’s my friend now."

"Cool," Cooper says, flashing a smile at Kurt, who tentatively smiles back. "Come on, we better go before Dad starts wondering where we are."

Blaine can’t help the sad noise that escapes him despite knowing that he’ll see Kurt tomorrow. He feels a little better when Kurt, surprisingly, hugs him, squeezing tightly. “See you later, Blaine.”

"See you, Kurt," Blaine responds, breaking the hug so he can catch up to Cooper, who has already started to walk back to their trailer. Blaine turns as he jogs, waving to Kurt.

"Figures you get a play date while I don’t get any dates," Cooper says, ruffling Blaine’s hair. Blaine scrunches his face and ducks out of the way.

"Kurt’s not  _just_  a play date, he’s my best friend.”

"Okay, Squirt. Whatever you say." 

Blaine’s not sure what to make of Cooper’s tone, so he just ignores him. So what if he calls every new friend his best friend? Everyone’s a best friend at first because everything’s new and exciting. Blaine hasn’t found anyone that’s stayed a best friend, though; he has friends, and he loves spending time with them, but it’s always different after a while. Not bad-different, just not the same.

He makes sure to release the fireflies from his jar when they get to the trailer, watching them blink away into the woods surrounding the trailer park. The jar he places on the counter in the tiny kitchen inside the trailer, hoping to save it for tomorrow night when he can catch more fireflies, maybe with Kurt again.

His parents agree to let him see Kurt again - not that he’d expected otherwise - and are too tired to say much else, so the entire family is in bed within the half-hour while Blaine is still wide awake, thinking of the next day when he’ll see Kurt and have more adventures with him.

Kurt’s probably a firefly, Blaine thinks. He’s still not clear on what that means, but something tells him he’s right. In any case, being a firefly seems to be a good thing, and meeting Kurt is definitely a good thing. Whether or not he himself is a firefly, well, he’s not sure. Is Cooper a firefly? Probably not. Maybe sometimes.

He’ll ask Kurt about it tomorrow. For now, Blaine watches the actual fireflies outside the small window that his bunk affords him, and slowly drifts off.

 

* * *

 

With a friend like Kurt to play with, the week passes by in what feels like only a few seconds. On the last night before both families are due to make the drive home, they’re not catching fireflies, but watching them from a blanket that Burt (Kurt’s dad, he’s a little scary but Blaine thinks he’s nice enough) had set out on the grass for them. 

"Kurt?"

"What?"

"What does it mean if someone’s a firefly?" Blaine asks, staring at a firefly that has landed on the corner of their blanket. It flashes a few times before taking off again. Kurt frowns at the grass, thinking.

"I don’t really know," he says. "Mommy talks about that sometimes, and when she does I think I know for a little bit, but I guess I don’t most of the time."

"Huh?"

"Well, when Mommy talks about it, it makes sense. A lot of things she says are like that, I think." Kurt looks like he’s thinking too much, so Blaine, out of reflex, takes his hand. For a second it seems like Kurt’s going to pull away, but he doesn’t. "Maybe I’ll know when I grow up."

Blaine grins. “What do you want to be when you grow up, Kurt?”

"I want to sing, dance, and wear nice clothes," Kurt says immediately; he turns away almost immediately too, as if he doesn’t want to see Blaine’s reaction. Which is weird, because Blaine thinks that stuff is pretty cool, and Kurt already wears nice clothes so he’s partway there. "What do you want to be?"

"I just want to help people," Blaine says after taking a few seconds to think about it. He nods to himself. "I like helping people. It feels good. But I like singing and dancing too."

"You do?" Kurt turns back to him, an eyebrow raised. Blaine beams.

"Of course I do, it’s fun! It’s not as fun when I do it with my brother, but that’s okay, it’s still pretty fun."

"But…" Kurt keeps looking at him, nervous. Blaine can’t figure out why. He’s starting to learn that Kurt’s not easy to figure out most of the time. "Don’t people tell you that’s… stupid, sometimes?"

Blaine furrows his brows. “Not really. Dad sometimes doesn’t like it when we put on shows at home, but Mama always loves it.” Kurt shakes his head.

"I mean other kids," he says quietly. "That’s what they say at my school."

"Oh." Blaine squeezes Kurt’s hand, suddenly determined to make him happy again. "Well I think  _that’s_  stupid, everyone should love singing and dancing. I bet you’re the best singer and dancer-er of all.”

Kurt giggles a little; Blaine counts it as a victory. They watch the fireflies for a few minutes longer in silence. Blaine’s not used to being quiet - he likes talking to people too much to consider not saying anything at all - but with Kurt, it feels nice to just sit and enjoy each other’s company. Maybe this is what it’s  _really_  like to have a best friend.

Blaine wishes they could both stay here among the fireflies forever.

"Kurt?" Kurt turns his head towards his trailer and Blaine’s heart drops. "Honey, it’s time for bed."

"Coming Mommy," Kurt calls, standing up. Blaine stands with him, staring at his feet as he follows his friend to the trailer. "Are you okay?" Blaine nods, but he can tell Kurt doesn’t believe him. "Are you sad?"

Blaine nods again.

"Me too," Kurt admits. He’s opening his mouth to say something else when Liz (Blaine knows now that her full name is Elizabeth) touches Blaine’s shoulder, making him look up.

"Your parents and I talked earlier," she tells him gently. "They said they’re planning to come back here next year at the same time, and so are we." Blaine blinks at her.

"Does that mean…"

"We don’t have to say goodbye, just ‘see you later.’ Okay?"

Blaine wants to kiss her on the cheek, so he does, receiving a hug in return. “Okay,” he says, nodding. “I’ll remember.”

"So will Kurt, I’m sure. Right?" Kurt ducks his head, smiling.

"Right." She runs a hand through Kurt’s hair, something Blaine already knows must be a well-earned privilege. He hates having his hair messed up even more than Blaine does, which is saying something.

"There’s warm milk inside when you’re ready, sweetie," Liz says, straightening up. "It was nice getting to know you this week, Blaine."

"You too," Blaine says, his mood dampening a little with the thought that, while he might see Kurt again, it won’t be for a very long time. Liz goes inside, leaving the two boys alone. Blaine scuffs his heel in the dirt. "A year is a long time."

"It’s not as long as… _ten_  years,” Kurt says, clearly trying to make light of the situation. Blaine smiles a little; he has to admit that that’s true. “Promise you’ll remember me?”

"I promise," Blaine says, holding his hand up. "You promise, too?"

Kurt mirrors him, says, ”Yep.” He drops his hand and Blaine follows suit, glancing sadly in the direction of his trailer. “You have to go?”

"Yeah. I don’t want to go."

"It’s okay," Kurt says with certainty. "We’ll see each other next year." To Blaine’s surprise, Kurt leans in and kisses him quickly on the cheek. "See you, Blaine."

"See you, Kurt," Blaine says, but Kurt’s already dashing away, turning at the door to wave to him before heading inside, the outer screen door making a soft whooshing noise as it swings shut.

 

* * *

 

Blaine, of course, keeps his promise. He spends the whole month before they’re supposed to leave bugging Cooper with things like “Do you think he’ll remember me?” and “I bet I grew taller than him!” It gets so bad that Cooper actually shuts himself in his room and refuses to let Blaine inside, which makes Blaine a little sad because he’d missed Cooper during the school year. He didn’t realize that ‘boarding school’ meant that Cooper would actually be  _gone_  until he asked Mama when he’d be home from school on the first day and she had said, “Oh, I think he’ll visit in a couple of weeks. Don’t you worry, my little bee.”

When the time finally comes and they arrive at the campground, Blaine nearly leaps out of the car. His dad tells him to help them get settled, which only lets his excitement build further until he sprints off when his mom sets him free from chores to find Kurt.

He doesn’t find Kurt, and returns to the trailer so disheartened that even Cooper seems to feel bad.

"Hey Squirt, it’s alright," he says, pulling Blaine against his side. "Maybe they’ll come tomorrow."

"You really think so?"

"Sure I do." Blaine dares to think that maybe Cooper will play with him this year, but then he’s off looking for a cell signal, muttering, "Can’t find an agent if I can’t make a damn call—"

It’s not a  _terrible_  day after that, seeing as his mom makes s’mores with him in broad daylight and even Dad joins in, cheery in the way that Blaine knows means he’s ‘moving up’ at work, whatever that means. He still wishes he could have spent the day with Kurt, the boy he has only spent a week with - one week a year ago - but who’s still, in his mind, his best friend.

When night falls, at least the fireflies are there, floating and carefree. Blaine can’t bring himself to catch any of them without Kurt, though, so he simply watches them until he has to go to bed.

The next day threatens to bring rain, but Blaine dutifully sets out to explore the campground in late afternoon, hoping that he has waited long enough to give Kurt and his family a chance to arrive and get settled. It had been the worst wait  _ever_ , waking up early and realizing that it takes time to make it to a campground in the middle of nowhere.

Blaine searches for hours, circling the area until he knows he has seen every last trailer (none of them being Kurt’s), but he refuses to give up even when his feet start to ache. Unfortunately, when it starts to get dark outside and he spots the first firefly drifting along, it’s all too clear that he’s out of luck.

Or maybe not.

He sees a trailer in a previously empty spot near the edge of the campground; it must have arrived while he was exploring other areas. Even better, he spots a young boy that can’t be anyone other than Kurt, and Blaine nearly shouts his name as loud as he can. But he doesn’t, because something’s wrong.

Kurt’s sitting at the picnic table, facing away from Blaine with his head down, his face buried in his arms. He’s still, quiet, and even though Kurt’s a lot quieter than other kids Blaine knows, he’s usually saying or doing  _something_. Blaine’s not sure if he should approach him or not, but he glances at the fireflies and an idea comes to him that might make whatever’s wrong a little better.

Half an hour later, Blaine sets a jar on the table next to Kurt. A jar of fireflies.

"Dad, go away," Kurt mumbles, and Blaine frowns.

"It’s me," he says. "Remember me?" Kurt lifts his head up like it takes effort to do so, looking at Blaine with eyes that are noticeably red even in the almost-dark.

"Blaine?" Kurt asks, as if he’s not sure of his name. He narrows his eyes a little and Blaine wonders if Kurt has somehow decided he doesn’t like him anymore. He really hopes not. " _You_  remember  _me_?”

“‘Course I do, you’re my best friend,” Blaine says emphatically. Kurt sighs, the firefly jar drawing his gaze. He sniffs, and Blaine realizes that he’s been crying, might still be on the edge of it if his expression at the sight of the jar is any indication.

"Um, you brought fireflies?"

"Yeah, remember you taught me how to catch them?" Kurt nods slowly. "How did you learn that, again?" At that, Kurt shakes his head sharply, takes a few deep, shuddering breaths. "Hey, Kurt, are you okay?"

"I’m fine," Kurt says forcefully, and Blaine’s pretty inclined to believe that he’s lying, but what can he do about that? He just wants to make Kurt feel better, but he doesn’t even know what’s wrong. "Don’t wanna talk."

"Oh." Blaine stares at the table, at Kurt’s restless fingers tapping a steady rhythm against the wood. "Can we just sit together?"

Kurt makes a motion between a shrug and a nod, so Blaine takes it as a yes and sits on the bench a few inches away from him. It’s a nice night with relatively few mosquitoes flying among the fireflies, so he’s content to sit and enjoy the evening - it’s not really his style, this sitting around stuff, but as long as he’s doing this with Kurt it’s the best thing he can think of doing right now. 

A few minutes turns into almost an hour, and Blaine starts fidgeting; he can’t help it, he’s only eight years old and accustomed to constant movement. He has to say  _something_ , so he searches his memory for a topic. A whole year has blurred much of what he and Kurt talked about, but he remembers one thing in particular, and perks up as he realizes he just might understand it now.

"I think you’re a firefly, Kurt," he says. Kurt looks at him for a moment, frowning slightly.

"Why?" Blaine bites his lip; explaining himself is hard.

"I just know," he says with a little shrug. "I can tell. Can’t you?"

"No," Kurt says. He once again stares at the firefly jar that Blaine brought and, this time, smiles a little. "I like that, though. I want to be a firefly."

"Do you wanna catch more?" Blaine asks tentatively as Kurt reaches for the jar to pull it closer. He doesn’t want to do or say anything wrong, but it seems he has nothing to worry about - Kurt’s smile widens (though it doesn’t quite brighten his expression as much as Blaine remembers) and he nods.

"The first one with three whole jars wins," he says, "and this one doesn’t count." Kurt rushes into the trailer and returns with six jars - Blaine thinks he hears his dad’s voice and briefly wonders why he hasn’t seen Kurt’s mom yet, but then Kurt’s lining the jars up on the table and he focuses his attention on winning.

The week passes in a whirl of excitement and new adventures and telling stories about school, but Blaine can’t help but notice that Kurt spends quite a bit of time looking very… well, sad. He tries asking him what’s wrong, just once, but Kurt diverts his attention to something that looks like a fox scurrying into the woods, and he forgets all about it until he’s back in his own trailer that night, wondering.

On the last night before the Andersons leave, they’re actually inside Blaine’s trailer - outside it’s storming, so the fireflies are nowhere to be seen. Kurt’s sitting on one end of Blaine’s small bed with a sketchbook while Blaine huddles at the other, watching him and trying to ignore the storm outside. He likes seeing lightning, and he enjoys rain and the way it makes everything smell the next day, but the sound of thunder is another story.

"Look," Kurt says after a few minutes, "I drew you as the sun." Blaine leans forward to get a better look; Kurt’s drawing makes him smile in spite of a sudden crash of thunder. The sun has his eyebrows and a bow tie, which is something he has taken to wearing more often lately, to Kurt’s delight.

"Why the sun?" he asks, curious. Kurt shrugs.

"I don’t know, it reminds me of you. The sun is happy and so are you."

"I’m not  _always_  happy,” Blaine says with a slight frown, but Kurt just smiles at him.

"Spending time with you makes me happy," he says. "I wish we lived closer to each other." Blaine nods sadly, but a thought comes to him that makes him perk up.

"Maybe we can mail letters to each other! And call each other!" Kurt blinks at him for a second, then beams.

"I’ll ask Dad to give your parents our address and phone number," he says. Kurt looks out the small window and sighs. "I don’t want to walk back in the rain."

"You can sleep over if you want," Blaine says. "Unless your dad doesn’t want you to." Kurt seems to struggle with himself for a moment; Blaine tilts his head, wondering some more. He’s been doing a lot of that lately.

"I can sleep over," Kurt finally decides, though he looks uneasy about it.

"Are you sure?" Blaine furrows his brows, trying to think of an alternative that won’t get Kurt into trouble with his very nice (but still potentially scary) dad. "I think we have an umbrella. I can walk you back to your trailer!"

"But you’re scared of the thunder," Kurt says, unsure. Blaine waves his hand dismissively.

"No I’m not." He gets down from the bed and loudly searches through their supplies and receiving a dirty look from Cooper, who’s at the tiny table in the kitchen with his phone. Blaine finds the umbrella in a bottom drawer in the kitchen and returns to Kurt, who leaves the sketchbook on the bed as he climbs down. "It’s really little, but if we walk close together it’ll work!"

"Hey, where do you think you’re going?" Cooper calls to them.

"I’m taking Kurt back to his trailer," Blaine says, leading Kurt towards the door. Cooper raises an eyebrow - he knows how much Blaine hates thunder, but he doesn’t say anything.

"Well, don’t take too long, I don’t want to have to come find you out there. I have people in sunny Los Angeles to talk to." In return for Cooper not saying anything about Blaine’s fear, Blaine says nothing about how it seems like Cooper hasn’t managed to talk to anybody at all this week. He still seems determined to succeed in whatever he’s trying to do, though. "Be careful, Squirt."

"We will."

Blaine’s assertion that he’s not scared of thunder quickly becomes meaningless as they walk to Kurt’s trailer; Kurt notices and takes his hand. squeezing gently. When Blaine gives him a questioning glance, he just says, “When Dad holds my hand, I feel better.”

Holding hands with Kurt is nice, and it makes Blaine feel so warm inside that he’s reluctant to let go when they make it to the trailer. Still, he does so anyway, and he stands just inside the door to take a quick break from walking in the pouring rain as Kurt goes to tell his dad that he’s back.

"Blaine walked me back," he hears Kurt say, just out of sight. "He has an umbrella." Blaine can’t hear Burt - he hears his voice, but not the words. By now, Blaine has guessed that much of Kurt’s sadness this week is probably attributed to the gap in their little family left by his mom. He’s not sure where she might be, but she definitely isn’t here. "Blaine!"

Blaine startles, interrupted in his thoughts. “Huh?” Kurt’s standing in front of him, quite a bit taller due to Blaine standing on the lower steps just inside the trailer’s door; Blaine has to look up at him.

"Thank you for walking me home," Kurt says, smiling. Blaine perks up and grins.

"You’re welcome!" Before he can say another word, Kurt leans down to hug him. The angle is slightly awkward, but the hug makes Blaine feel undeniably pleased to have a friend like Kurt.

"Be careful, okay?" Kurt’s voice drops to a nervous whisper as he pulls back. "There might be  _bears_  out there.”

"I don’t think bears like rain," Blaine says, "but I’ll be super-duper careful."

"Good." Kurt glances from side to side and, before Blaine can react, darts down to kiss him briefly on the cheek. Blaine blinks, stunned, and Kurt watches him worriedly until he breaks into a wide smile. 

"See you, Kurt," Blaine says. Kurt just nods. "Still promise you’ll remember me?"

"I promise if you do," Kurt says; Blaine gives him a thumbs-up in affirmation. Kurt waves at him even as he yawns and Blaine can’t help but giggle around his own yawn while he turns and opens the door. He steps down to the ground, umbrella in place, and heads off to his trailer.

It isn’t until the next morning, just before they leave, that Blaine realizes he forgot to get Kurt’s phone number and address. He tells his mom in a panic and she writes a number down on a piece of paper.

"Bring this to him, it’s our phone number. But hurry!"

"I will," Blaine calls, already sprinting off with the paper in hand. He doesn’t have time to get Kurt’s number or mailing address in exchange, but it’s okay, this way at least Kurt can call him.

 

* * *

 

Kurt doesn’t call him, nor does Blaine see him the next summer at the campground.

 

* * *

 

The year after that, Blaine still doesn’t get to see Kurt. However, he does see a trailer decked out in what Cooper tells him are fairy lights. They remind him of fireflies. They also remind him of Kurt.

 

* * *

 

It’s when Blaine is seventeen and about to enter his second year at Dalton - his third overall year of high school - that the Andersons return to the campground after a few years of skipping the trip as a result of work and Blaine’s summer activities conflicting with the date. He’s not particularly thrilled about it. Cooper isn’t here (though, frankly, that’s probably better) and his dad insists on teaching him all about how to pitch a tent and start a campfire. It’s better than the one summer he tried to teach him about cars, but still.

Not to mention there’s something missing.

"Can you believe that the first time we came here was ten years ago?" Blaine’s mom says, attempting to make conversation. Blaine nods politely; he might feel surly, but acting like it isn’t something he usually likes to do. "You were only seven years old. Cooper was… fifteen." She looks at him mock-sternly. "You boys need to stop growing up on me."

"Maybe I should take the second star to the right and never grow up at all," Blaine says with a smile. "I can take you with me so you’ll never grow old, either."

"Oh, you’re too sweet, little bee." Blaine adjusts his chair so he can better look into the sky at the stars. "I don’t know if you would remember, but you used to play with this nice little boy here, what was his name again…"

"Kurt," Blaine says without thinking about it. He’s taken aback, but he’s not exactly surprised that he still remembers the name.

"You do remember! I wonder how he’s doing. You two used to catch all the fireflies and put them in jars, like little lanterns."

 _That’s_  what’s missing.

"Where are the fireflies?" Blaine asks, looking around to confirm the fact that, yes, all the fireflies have somehow disappeared.

"Oh, I think the owners of the lot started spraying some kind of mosquito repellent across the entire place. I saw on the news that they were criticized for it—"

"Well yeah, that’s not good for the environment, is it?" Blaine says, frowning.

"Exactly. But being mosquito-free is something they can boast about. It’s just too bad the fireflies can’t survive here anymore, either."

"Yeah," Blaine says, suddenly feeling much worse than before. If they could go home tomorrow, that would be more than fine with him, but they still have six days to go. "I think I’m gonna take a walk."

"I’ll probably be asleep when you get back, then," she says, yawning. "Have a good night."

"You too. Love you, Mama."

After folding and putting away his chair, Blaine starts off along the dirt road that winds through the campground. He smiles and waves at the friendly strangers that greet him, but otherwise he pays little attention to the other people occupying the area with tents and trailers. That is, until he hears a voice cut clear through the dark space between sites.

"Dad, didn’t we bring any lanterns?"

"Thought that’s what your phone’s for," a deeper, rather gruff voice responds. Blaine walks towards the conversation; the second voice sounds a bit familiar. "It makes light, don’t it?"

"What happened to having a real camping experience?"

"All your tech happened, that’s what." A few grunts, then, "If you still want a lantern after a couple of days, I’ll drive to that town and buy one. Alright? For now we can make a fire."

"Works for me. At least  _I_  brought what I was supposed to: graham crackers, marshmallows, and chocolate.”

Blaine nearly stumbles when he realizes he’s closer to the speakers than he thought; they’re immediately to his right. One of them must have gone inside their trailer, but the other is crouched by the fire pit, hidden in shadow. Blaine squints, trying to make out the person’s appearance without being too obvious. Suddenly a spark illuminates the person’s face for a split-second—

No, it couldn’t be. He barely remembers Kurt, and he only got to see the guy’s face for a moment, anyway. Blaine can’t turn away, though, and keeps watching as the guy struggles to light the fire. He’s about to go help when a spark finally stays alive as a flame within a few blocks of firewood.

Now he can see the person’s face more clearly in the almost-steady light. And, well, he hasn’t seen Kurt Hummel in almost ten years, and he looks extremely different, but… Blaine just  _knows_  it’s Kurt. The problem is, he can’t just walk up to Kurt and expect him to remember him. Sure, he could  _tell_  Kurt that they were friends a long time ago… or he could do something more meaningful.

Seeing Kurt now that he has grown up a bit (and grown up  _very_  well, Blaine thinks with a bit of a blush) seems to have sparked some kind of bright energy that he didn’t have before. It’s just too bad he can’t bring a jar of fireflies to Kurt - that would be perfect.

However… Blaine thinks he might be able to give Kurt the next best thing.

 

* * *

 

The next morning, Blaine manages to convince his dad to let him drive their car out to the nearest town, which is approximately thirty minutes away. His explanation - he’s just craving gummy worms - is less than believable, but he gets the keys to the car nonetheless and drives out of the campground as quickly as he can without disturbing anyone.

Once in town, Blaine searches high and low for just one thing: fairy lights. He comes across the problem of needing an electrical outlet (not ideal for his plans) but then he finds a box of solar-powered fairy lights. He picks up a jar as well and, trying not to wince at the price tag of the lights, checks out with the debit card his parents gave him a while ago for emergencies. This… well, it’s not an emergency, but Blaine considers it important.

After he returns to the campground, Blaine makes sure to let the lights soak up the sun, grateful to have such a beautiful summer day when he really needs it. It’s torture to wait until dark, but he manages to pass the time by lounging outside and reading a book that was assigned to him for school. As he reads, however, his thoughts stray to Kurt, and to one question in particular:

Why didn’t Kurt ever call him? 

He still hasn’t come up with an answer by the time night falls, but the fairy lights - bright and almost as pretty as fireflies - easily distract him. Blaine stuffs the lights into the jar and grins, pleased with his work. Kurt won’t need to get a lantern if he has this.

Blaine worries that he won’t find Kurt’s trailer, but his worry is for naught as he manages to retrace his steps and find it within ten minutes. He hides the jar behind his back as he approaches the trailer; luckily, it seems like Burt is inside again, and Kurt is at the picnic table with a deck of cards. Blaine vaguely registers that he’s playing Solitaire before he clears his throat, making Kurt look up.

"Hello," Kurt says, guarded. "Are you looking for Burt Hummel?"

Blaine shakes his head. “I’m looking for his son, actually. You.”

"Oh." Kurt narrows his eyes at him, and Blaine thinks that he might be starting to recognize him, if only just a little. He decides it’s a good time to reveal the jar so he does, smiling as he sets it on the table in front of Kurt, who appears confused. "Um, thank you?"

"There aren’t any fireflies, but I figured fairy lights would get the same idea across," Blaine says, shrugging. He takes a breath. "Don’t you remember me? I’m- I’m Blaine. I know it’s been, like, ten years or something but—"

"Oh my god." Kurt starts to smile, then covers his mouth. "/Blaine/, oh my god, I remember now! What have you done to your hair?"

"I- What?" Blaine frowns. Kurt waves it off as he stands up, rushing around the table to envelop Blaine in a hug that feels just as warm as it did nine years ago.

"I’m sorry if this is weird," Kurt says, his voice muffled. He pulls back. "It’s weird. You haven’t seen me in so long and we only actually saw each other for, what, two or three weeks altogether? And here I am hugging you like you’re my—" Kurt stops, cheeks turning red. "Never mind."

"I don’t think it’s that weird," Blaine says. "Maybe it should be, but… I don’t feel weird about it, do you?" Kurt shakes his head, the corner of his mouth turning up in a small smile. Blaine glances at the ground. "But why didn’t you call me?"

"Call you? I… oh," Kurt says. He bites his lip. "I lost your number on the way home. I wanted to hold that piece of paper in my hand all the way back, but then it ended up getting blown out of the open window. I’m so sorry, Blaine."

"No, no, it’s okay," Blaine tells him, because it  _is_ , and that explanation makes perfect sense.

"Dad didn’t want to come back after that, I think because he thought it was too lonely after Mom passed." Blaine’s heart drops into his stomach; he’d forgotten about Elizabeth’s absence, but now it’s coming back to him in full force. His eight year-old self had had no idea. No wonder Kurt never wanted to talk about what was making him sad. "I didn’t talk to him for about a week after he told me that."

"Why not?"

"I wanted to see you, of course," Kurt says as if it’s obvious. "We’re here now because Dad wanted to get one last trip in before my senior year, since next summer he expects me to be in New York City."

"Oh, wow," Blaine says. "College?"

"Mhm, at NYADA, I hope. New York Academy of the Dramatic Arts."

"I’ve heard of it! Isn’t it ridiculously hard to get into?" Kurt nods.

"I plan on doing everything in my power to get in," he says. He looks around, then says, "Do you want to sit? I believe we have a lot to catch up on." Blaine nods enthusiastically and gestures for Kurt to sit at the same time that Kurt gestures for Blaine to do the same; they laugh, and Blaine gets a strange feeling in his chest - like he’s soaring.

 

* * *

 

By the end of the week, Blaine knows a lot more than he did before.

For instance, he now knows that Kurt is gay, and has had trouble in school as a result. Blaine had tried to be angry on Kurt’s behalf regarding the behavior of some jerk named Dave Karofsky, but Kurt had told him not to worry because it turns out that he just been acting out of fear. Blaine still thinks he’s kind of a jerk, but he trusts Kurt’s judgment.

He also knows that Kurt is part of the New Directions, the show choir at William McKinley High School in Lima - the very same show choir that the Dalton Academy Warblers had been slotted to compete against once, until the districts were redrawn before the competition happened and they ended up competing against completely different schools.

He knows that Kurt has never had a boyfriend, that he loves cheesecake and terrible reality TV, that he can work with cars thanks to his time helping his dad in his tire shop, and that the only vampires that don’t scare him are the ones from Twilight - but he was still Team Jacob because of Taylor Lautner. Oh, and he knows Kurt’s phone number at long last. It’s saved in his phone under “ _Kurt :D_.”

Finally, Blaine knows that he’s falling very quickly for this boy who was once (and, in all honesty, still is) his best friend, and he has no idea how to tell Kurt.

"Mom used to tell me that some people are like fireflies," Kurt says. Blaine remembers, but he lets Kurt continue. "I think I know without a doubt what she means now."

"Oh?" Out of the corner of his eye he sees Kurt smile; they’re lying side-by-side on a blanket underneath the stars, the jar of fairy lights sitting in the grass above their heads.

"They’re people that are just… made of light. You know, they just make you feel better no matter what. They don’t even have to do anything except be there, and it’s like they’re sharing their light with you." Kurt rolls onto his side, facing Blaine. "People like you."

Blaine lets out a breath. “I don’t know about that, but if you’re right, well… all I ever had to do was follow your light. You’re a firefly too, Kurt, and I personally think you shine much brighter than any other.”

"Mom said I was a firefly too," Kurt says, smiling. "She told me that my light would draw other fireflies to me."

"She was a smart woman."

"I agree." Kurt starts to turn to lie on his back again, but Blaine stops him before he knows what he’s doing; he ends up grabbing Kurt’s wrist by accident, then his hand, and Blaine plucks up the courage to say what he wants to say before they have to part ways again tomorrow.

"I really like you, Kurt," he says, eyes wide. Kurt’s lips part in surprise, and Blaine can’t help the way he glances at them. "I’m really glad you’re my friend, but I’ve been thinking—"

"Yes," Kurt says quickly. He blushes. "Wait, you  _are_  asking to be… more than friends, right?”

"Yeah, yeah I am," Blaine says. "Is that okay?"

"God, more than okay." He’s not really sure who makes the first move; all Blaine knows is that, suddenly, they’re kissing. It’s clear that neither of them have had that much experience, but it doesn’t matter. Kurt’s lips feel perfect against Blaine’s, and he can feel that same warmth that he feels when they hug - or, lately, whenever Kurt smiles - and some small part of him knows that that warmth has a name. For now, though, Blaine’s more than happy to just keep kissing Kurt and then call him his boyfriend and go on dates. There’s a playhouse performance of RENT near Lima that will be starting soon; Blaine decides in this instant that he should buy two tickets.

"Hey," Blaine says involuntarily when Kurt pulls back.

"I need to breathe at some point," Kurt says; he’s grinning and flushed, his lips definitely redder than they were before. "So, is this when ‘if you’re a firefly then I’m a firefly’ becomes our ‘if you’re a bird then I’m a bird?’"

"Fireflies… or fairy lights," Blaine offers, glancing up at the jar.

"How about both?"

Blaine smiles and leans in for another, shorter kiss. Kurt’s hand finds his and squeezes, and Blaine knows that they’ve made a different promise. Not just to remember each other, but to be there for each other, always. “Fireflies and fairy lights, it is.”


End file.
